


No Cheat Days

by kuzuhina (Know_Your_Paradoxes)



Series: Hope's Peak University [1]
Category: New Dangan Ronpa V3: Everyone's New Semester of Killing
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Non-Despair, College, Gen, M/M, Strong Boy Kaito Momota
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-25
Updated: 2017-05-25
Packaged: 2018-11-04 00:52:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,638
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10978944
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Know_Your_Paradoxes/pseuds/kuzuhina
Summary: Prompt: My roommate is doing push ups on the floor and I’m not sure whether to be turned on by their athletic powers or freaked out.Saihara Shuuichi: It is three o'clock in the morning, and Momota Kaito is doing push ups in the middle of my living room.





	No Cheat Days

Saihara Shuuichi watched in amazement as his new roommate got through his first rep of 20 push ups. He had to blink a few times to process that this was in fact happening, yes, it was three in the morning, yes his roommate was shirtless, and yes, he was feeling things that he should not be feeling.

He grabbed his phone. Akamatsu-san was the only person he could think of that would talk to him this early in the morning, or really at all. He pulled up her number and began to text her.

 **Saihara Shuuichi:** It is three oclock in the morning and Momota Kaito is doing push ups in the middle of my living room  
**Saihara Shuuichi:** I'm feeling incredibly conflicted Akamatsu-san what is happening

He felt relieved as soon as she responded, the vibration of his cell phone bringing him some eerie form of comfort. He read what Akamatsu-san had replied with.

 **Akamatsu Kaede:** what the heck exactly is going on???

 **Saihara Shuuichi:** I've explained everything that I know Akamatsu-san  
**Saihara Shuuichi:** if I knew more I would've told you

He watched more with incredulous eyes at the surprising muscle definition that Momota-kun seemed to have. It was clearly cut, but not to the point where he looked unhealthy. He wasn't bulked out or anything, but he still had some muscles on him that people could clearly see. Saihara looked at his roommate, feeling the blush in his cheeks beginning to grow redder and warmer as Momota-kun finished the second rep of 20 push ups. He wondered just how many push ups he was even going to do, and if he was going to stay and watch them all like a creep.

Another vibration, which meant another response from Akamatsu-san.

 **Akamatsu Kaede:** well at least send me some pictures, saihara-kun!!!

Saihara felt a nervous sweat break on his forehead. _Pictures?_ he asked himself, somewhat scared. _What if Momota-kun sees me taking pictures and confronts me? I can't just say that my friend was asking for them! Especially not when it's Akamatsu-san, and she's already got a boyfriend!_

He gulped before opening the camera app and making sure the flash was off and his phone sounds were all muted. One picture, two pictures, three. That should be enough to satiate Akamatsu-san's curiosity... right?

He sent them all to her, with an attached message:

 **Saihara Shuuichi:** I'm not sure what to think about this

Momota-kun was breaking a sweat now, as he was done with his third set. Saihara immediately jumped to the conclusion that he was going to do 5 reps of 20 each -- equalling 100 push ups in total. It was a reasonable number, even, easy to keep track of.

He was even attractive when he was covered in sweat.

 **Akamatsu Kaede:** um??? he looks good??? what are you confused about other than your sexuality

Saihara felt his blush turn even more red. At this rate, he would burst some blood vessels if he didn't calm down. He reread Akamatsu-san's text, wondering what he was truly confused about. Sure, it was weird that Momota-kun was doing push ups in the middle of the room at 3 in the morning, but other than that, what reason did he have? Shouldn't he have just went back to bed and questioned him in the morning? Why was he still standing there, admiring the work that Momota-kun had put into his muscles?

(Specifically his abs. The boy had some nice abs. Push ups weren't doing those any wonders, but Saihara had no reason to assume that he skipped any abdominal exercises.)

 **Saihara Shuuichi:** I've already told you I came to terms with being interested in the same sex a while ago  
**Saihara Shuuichi:** and besides it's not exactly something that I enjoy flaunting around campus

The fourth set was now done. If Saihara didn't find resolution, he would soon have to make a bold-faced lie to Momota-kun's face explaining why he had been standing in the doorway, staring blankly at his abs like a deviant. He had to admit though, there were worse situations to be in. Momota-kun was an attractive man, that much was true. He had to admit that to himself, even if it wasn't something he enjoyed doing. He wanted to punch all of his feelings in the face. Unfortunately, as a psychology major with a minor in Criminal Justice, he had to come to terms with the fact that emotions were a part of his natural being, much like everyone else's. He felt the urge to huff in disappointment, but then remembered that he had to keep especially quiet, lest his hot roommate hear him and get suspicious.

 **Akamatsu Kaede:** talk to him, saihara-kun!!! you might score a hot boyfriend out of this deal!!!

Saihara had to fight the rising temptation to laugh at Akamatsu-san's response. Of course he wasn't going to just admit that he found Momota-kun attractive. After all, the two had barely met each other. It was only 1 month on campus, and the most they had exchanged were warm smiles and phone numbers to call in case of emergencies.

Plus, he did NOT want to be the attractive astronaut trainee's boyfriend... did he?

He was probably straight, anyway. After all, he'd heard Momota-kun mention past girlfriends left and right, but never anywhere did he speak about an ex-boyfriend of his, or even the slightest hint of a romantic interest in another male. It was really heteronormative of Saihara to think this way, but as a member of the LGBTQ+ community, he spoke from experience when he said that the assumptions were still ingrained in him from an early age.

Momota-kun was masculine, and rough around the edges, and flirty, and upbeat, and way too kind for anyone to pass up. Hell, he probably had a girlfriend as he spoke. What wasn't there to like about Momota Kaito?

Saihara shook his head, as though he thought Akamatsu-san could see him.

 **Saihara Shuuichi:** sorry Akamatsu-san but I'm afraid that's not something I can do  
**Saihara Shuuichi:** you should get to sleep don't you have a big lecture tomorrow?

He was shocked when he got an almost immediate response.

 **Akamatsu Kaede:** oh shoot, you're right, saihara-kun! thanks for reminding me!!  
**Akamatsu Kaede:** you get some sleep too, alright? and let me know if anything happened by tomorrow afternoon, okay?  
**Akamatsu Kaede:** goodnight, saihara-kun!!!

And with that, Akamatsu-san was off her phone. Saihara put his phone in the pocket that had conveniently came with his pajama pants, and watched as Momota-kun finished his final 20 push ups. He kept thinking to himself. Momota-kun was really attractive. Not even just physically, but emotionally and mentally, he was just as appealing.

He was kind, and gracious, and smart to boot. Astronomy majors were notorious for being good at what they did, and even having general knowledge of other areas of study that even some majors of those fields had no idea about. And he was always a gentleman. Sure, he swore like a sailor, but that wasn't something that would turn most away from him. There was just something so charming and captivating about Momota Kaito that Saihara would probably never be able to place. Was it how thoughtlessly kind he was to others, even when it wasn't necessary, or even really all that deserved. He was too kind for his own good, which was both a blessing and a curse. How could he possibly be that kind to people, when the world around him had been nothing but unforgiving? Saihara sighed. His unrelenting pessimism had gotten to him too much -- he needed to realize that not everyone was unnecessarily cruel to the world, and the world was not unnecessarily cruel to everyone.

Dammit, Momota-kun was getting up. His hair drooped a little now, and it actually started to look... normal. Which made Saihara feel confused and flustered in a way that he should not feel. He wasn't supposed to think that Momota-kun is attractive when he's different from his usual self, but here he was, feeling the emotions beginning to fall over him.

"Oh, Saihara-kun! I didn't notice you there. Sorry you had to see me all gross and sweaty like this. I look like shit, don't I?"

Hearing the swear word come out of Momota-kun's mouth made him even MORE attractive, which was completely foreign to Saihara, as he had barely heard people curse before until he had roomed with Momota Kaito. Saihara felt the blush in his cheeks come to a cool so that he didn't give away his thoughts.

"U-Um... no, you look just as normal as anyone else does after doing exercise. I was just going to get a glass of water," Saihara lied.

Momota-kun smirked. "Oh, thanks! And water sounds damn good to me right now. Mind if I tag along?"

 _Well, this is not the way that I expected things to go,_ Saihara mused within his head. If he were being completely honest with himself, he was expecting Momota-kun to have written him off as a creepy pervert that wanted to watch him exercise and thought that he looked good shirtless and sweaty. But here he was, with the same, mindless kindness that came in the package deal with Momota Kaito.

"I-I mean, you deserve to have a drink after exercise... right?" Saihara replied, a shy and awkward grin forming as he felt sweat begin to trickle down his forehead. He wanted to curse every deity he could think of, but unfortunately, he was simply unable to do that either. He was a non-confrontational guy, and this meant that as much as he'd like to chastise the world around him, he wouldn't be able to, no matter how hard he tried.

Momota-kun led the way, which Saihara was both grateful for and angry about, since he got a stellar view of Momota-kun's butt, and it was a nice butt indeed.

"Alright, we have bottled water in the fridge, right? Since we're apparently not bothered to get it out of the tap ourselves?" he asked, snapping Saihara out of the trance that had been induced by the mesmerizing man that was in front of him. Saihara couldn't form words at that moment, only having recently been brought back to reality from a fantasy world in which his roommate was totally okay with him being incredibly non-heterosexual about seeing him at three in the morning shirtless doing push ups in the middle of their living room.

Momota-kun grabbed a bottle, handed it to Saihara, then grabbed another for himself before shutting the fridge. "Figured it'd be easier on us both just to take the bottles we had stocked up. I'll refill the supply in the fridge once I get up again."

Saihara nervously fidgeted with the cap. How fantastic, he was now reduced to a bumbling mess of a person that even had trouble twisting off the cap of a water bottle, just because of a nice set of abdominal muscles. He wasn't sure whether to laugh or cry at that very notion, so he settled upon a solid "to be dealt with later".

Unfortunately, the astronaut in training seemed to notice his struggles with the lid of his water bottle, and he piped up by asking, "Hey, you need some help with that?"

The other boy nodded, feeling strangely comforted by Momota-kun's willingness to put up with his weaknesses. It was oddly satisfying to know that not everyone in the world was out to get him, he supposed. The world wasn't so bad of a place once he got past the cynicism that had kept him from growing to be just as charming and extroverted as the man who stood before him, twisting off the cap to a water bottle that he couldn't even get open.

He managed to unseal the lid before handing it back to Saihara, still slightly closed as not to let anything accidentally spill. "Here. I understand, it's hard to function capably at three in the morning, right?" He let out a chuckle, which was low and gravelly compared to his typical speaking voice, and the sound made his roommate's guts twist and turn.

"You seem to be doing just fine from the looks of it," the psychology prospective mused in response. He was actually proud of himself. Not only was that a coherent response, but that was also a GOOD one! Nice job, Saihara Shuuichi. You deserve to get a drink for that. He took a gulp of his water in victory.

"Touche," Momota-kun replied, a smirk forming at the edge of his lips. "Well, I've gotten used to it. I never really got the chance to work out that much back home, so I usually got up pretty early to start my routine before others noticed. Mom and Dad were always so worried about me getting hurt that they didn't seem to realize that I could learn to fend for myself. They almost didn't let me come to college, before I admitted that I had been training myself." He smirked before taking a sip of his bottle.

So he had been sheltered, just like Saihara. That was an odd thought to have. Just like Momota-kun, he had grown up with a fear of the outside world being instilled into him, programmed into his inner workings since he was a little kid. But unlike him, he had done nothing about it. He had gotten lucky and managed to be of use to his uncle at the detective agency, and was now studying psychology, so he could live a nice, normal, padded life with a job that he had already shown proficiency in, where he didn't have to worry about things, and even if he was in danger, there would be bulletproof vests, and watch dogs, and badges of honor. Detectives were usually not even in lines of fire, so he was even safer than the police officers would ever be.

Meanwhile, here stood a true example of a warrior, Momota Kaito, who had actively sought out his destiny. The astronomy program wasn't too much into physique, but he knew that most astronauts would have to prove to be physically capable of handling the effects space had on their health. Momota-kun had fought and worked so hard for what he wanted in life. He wanted to be an astronaut. He wanted to get stronger. He went against his family to do it, but he proved his point and showed them how able he was to get through life on his own. He was braver than Saihara could ever dream of being. It was almost scary to him how much Momota-kun seemed to exude courage.

"I understand that feeling. I never did anything like that though," Saihara admitted, giving a shy grin.

Momota-kun looked him in the eyes before bluntly saying, "You should smile more, it's cute when you do," and returning to his water bottle.

The blush that had previously threatened to overtake Saihara's face before he had calmed was suddenly back with a passion. "W-What?!" he asked, taken aback by the suddenness and seeming sincerity of his roommate's comment.

There was no way that someone like him would see someone as weak as Saihara Shuuichi as someone to be admirable. He was strong, and ambitious, and outgoing, and charismatic, and oh so fearless. Meanwhile, Saihara was timid, and quiet, and backwards, and unable to hold conversation, and afraid of EVERYTHING, it seemed. There was absolutely no possible way that Momota Kaito had called him cute and MEANT it.

"You heard what I said. Your smile. It's cute. What's so hard to understand about that?"

"W-Well... u-u-uh... I just... I didn't think that you..."

"No, I don't think of you like THAT. I just think you look nice when you smile. Like... you're whole. You look like a completed puzzle. The smile makes you look like everything is right with the world. It feels... I don't know, safe, I guess?" Momota-kun shrugged. "I'm not sure how to describe it."

That was something that made Saihara feel more than any of the other man's muscles could've made him feel. That was a genuine compliment, and a thoughtful one at that. Sure, he had mentioned that he didn't see Saihara as anything romantic, but he had said that he liked his smile, and that it looked right and natural when he did so, so that had to count for something, right? Then again, he was probably just overthinking things as usual. It wouldn't surprise him if he were looking into the compliment that he had just received too much. That was all too often an occurrence for him nowadays.

Out of the blue, Saihara had a crazy, stupid idea.

"M-Momota-kun... would you help me train, too?"

His purple eyes grew wide with surprise. Clearly he had been expecting the question just as much as Saihara had. "As long as you're willing to wake up at the ass crack of dawn, I'd be more than willing to help you out, Saihara-kun! Although, I might not be the best teacher if you value your sleep schedule at all..."

Saihara shrugged. He didn't sleep well anyway. For one, the dorm mattresses weren't exactly high quality, and he was homesick, although only a month of college wasn't enough time for him to get used to his dorm or his roommate yet, so of course he would miss the home he had grown up in where things were safe and warm and happy and predictable.

"If I valued my sleep so much, then why would I be awake right now talking to you?" he asked, smiling as he realized that he was slowly getting better at talking to others.

Momota-kun chuckled. "Well, damn. That was another zinger, Saihara-kun. I suppose. But not tonight. Those were my last reps and then I was going to plop back onto my bed and sleep for the next five thousand years. Tomorrow morning, then? Three A.M. sharp?"

He held out his pinkie finger, and Saihara instantly recognized this as the beginnings of a pinkie promise. He fought the urge to start cackling. This was a grade-school tactic, why was Momota-kun doing this? Did he seriously believe that a promise made by linking pinkies would do anything for him or the other party involved? What kind of promise could be that easily broken, anyway? All you had to do was move a finger and suddenly the bond was broken. It had never seemed like a valuable method of making promises to others, at least in Saihara's eyes.

But regardless of his own personal feelings toward the act of pinkie promises, he linked his pinkie finger around Momota-kun's, with a smile. "Three A.M. sharp. I'll remember to set an alarm." He held onto his water bottle with the other hand. Maybe this was a more concrete piece of evidence that their promise had taken place. He could just keep this water bottle around to remind him that he and Momota-kun had shared something. A bond, a shared trust... a friendship, even.

"Well, I'm tired as shit, so I'm heading off to bed. See you in the morning -- er, later on, in the morning -- Saihara-kun!" Momota-kun patted Saihara's shoulder, a grin plastered from ear to ear. Saihara felt his entire being shift with the force of Momota-kun's hand against his shoulder, as though he could be broken and swayed as easily as a swift poke on the back.

As he watched Momota-kun head back to his bed, he felt a slow, giddy rush filling his senses. What the hell was this? Was it the adrenaline of not being caught staring at his roommate's muscles? Was it the happiness he had just started to feel now that he had started a new alliance, something that could lead to a strong friendship in the future? Was it a crush that he had just formed on Momota-kun finally kicking in after being a little too slow to the punch? Was it a combination of the three? Was it all three, but separately and all at once?

Emotions had never been Saihara's strong suit, but when they were as muddled as what he was beginning to experience, he could probably say that most people wouldn't call emotions their strong suit were they in the same situation. He shook away the feeling from his head and began to trod back to his mattress, where the warm embrace of sleep was starting to overtake him.

Just before he could finally drift off, however, he felt his phone vibrate. He had almost completely forgotten that his phone was still on his person.

 **Akamatsu Kaede:** couldn't sleep, needed to know what was going on with momota-kun and you!!!!

He sighed and rolled his eyes. Of course Kaede wouldn't be able to sleep, what with all the heart-eyes he had been describing to her about witnessing his roommate in the act of exercising so he could lift three copies of Saihara all at once, probably fairly easily.

 **Saihara Shuuichi:** I don't know but it feels like a promise I guess

 **Akamatsu Kaede:** oh my gosh, saihara-kun!! that's so vague!!!  >:o  
**Akamatsu Kaede:** alright, you *have* to promise me that as soon as you get up tomorrow, you'll tell me what happened!!!

 **Saihara Shuuichi:** I will promise  
**Saihara Shuuichi:** Now get some sleep Akamatsu-san your test starts in 5 hours

 **Akamatsu Kaede:** shoot you're right yet again!!! i'll talk to you in the morning, saihara-kun! sleep well!!! :)

 **Saihara Shuuichi:** you too Akamatsu-san

He smirked as he reread what he had previously sent her. He still had no idea what was specifically going on, but he was excited to find out what else Momota Kaito had in store for him.


End file.
